The BL world is always filled with variable choices; some good, others unfairly regrettable. While we can’t always fall in love with most shows; today’s feature focuses on those dramas that left us bitterly disappointed with their inconsistent pacing or odd storyline. Join us, as our authors express their displeasure and talk about their most disappointing BL dramas!

Kdarling’s Choice

I don’t often find myself thinking about content that disappoints me as a viewer. Much of this is because I generally drop dramas I can’t get invested in. With the number of dramas and films constantly released, there’s no reason to watch content that doesn’t interest me personally, especially since each drama/film tends to be geared toward specific audiences. Therefore, I want to point out that my list only includes one example because I don’t often find myself genuinely disappointed in something. There are many dramas I’ve not completed, such as What The Duck, but I won’t list those because I’ve always felt wrong discussing or rating dramas I either haven’t seen or finished.

The drama mentioned below is one I watched while airing and completed.

I also want to add a disclaimer before I begin. The drama I’m about to mention has a huge fanbase, and I am not listing it because I believe the drama isn’t good. I’m also not listing it because I disliked it. On the contrary, it disappointed me because I felt it had a lot of potential. Nothing disappoints me more than seeing a great story that isn’t fully realized, and that’s why this particular drama fell short. But I also want to point out that I am in the minority on this and that my feelings are limited only to myself. One of the reasons why I rarely take on reviewing a drama I know I won’t be able to rate well is because I am aware of the hard work that goes into making them and because I know that there’s an audience out there for everything. I may not be fond of something, but others love it.

So, while I may have found myself disappointed by this drama, many more out there found themselves wholly impressed by it.

HIStory3: Make Our Days Count is a fan favorite. Much of that has to do with the lead actors involved. While I was also impressed with the acting, I was not as impressed with the story itself.

For those familiar with Make Our Days Count, it is a tragedy. I’ve seen many viewers admit to never watching the final episode of this drama because of this. But the reason Make Our Days Count disappoints me is because I actually found the final episode to be the best of the series. I am one of the few who doesn’t mind unhappy endings. However, if a drama goes the tragic route, I have high expectations for it, especially when it comes to the writing.

I mentioned above that the main reason I found myself disappointed in Make Our Days Count isn’t because I disliked the drama. It was because it deserved so much more. Many things fell short for me, but the main ones are the plot holes, the secondary couple’s storyline, and the comedic direction it took viewers in before abruptly changing its tone in the final episode. I won’t delve into every single nuance as the show has been off the air for some time.

I was saddened by how quickly the main secondary couple happened and how little they delved into their story. One moment Sun Bo Xiang is drooling over a man at the gym, and the next, they are having sex in the locker room before suddenly becoming a couple. In general, many of the secondary storylines and supporting characters in Make Our Days Count weren’t adequately fleshed out or resolved, which diminished the writing for me.

This poor writing brings me to my main reason for being disappointed: Xiang Hao Ting and Yu Xi Gu’s story.

Wayne Song and Huang Chun Chih did a brilliant job portraying their characters, and the way they managed to pull off the script impressed me, but the way their characters were written did not.

I am a fan of emotional and angsty dramas. While many were upset over Make Our Days Count’s tragic ending, I wasn’t upset by its conclusion. I was upset that I did not cry more. For a drama meant to be heartbreaking, it wasn’t written to be heartbreaking. Instead, it was written as a fun love/hate story with an abrupt ending. The final episode’s writing, acting, and dark tone are brilliantly done. Wayne Song delivered one of the most heartfelt, devastating performances I have seen in this show’s conclusion. I found myself invested in the characters in the final episode in a way that I wasn’t invested in them throughout the rest of the series. Even the secondary couple felt fuller in the conclusion than they did in the beginning. It was as if the series’ final episode had a different writer from the rest of the drama. From the music score to the darker tones to the dialogue and the acting itself, the final episode stood out. I am sad that many avoided the last episode because of Xi Gu’s death.

If Make Our Days Count had billed itself as a romantic comedy that ended on the second to last episode, I would have enjoyed the story it gave me. If it had fleshed out the secondary storylines and ended happily, I would have chalked it up to a light and satisfying feel-good drama. But, the truth is, I fell in love with the final episode. I fell in love with the tragedy it gave me and how well it was shot, which made the rest of the drama dim in comparison. The final episode of Make Our Days Count felt the first episode of a different drama about a man who had lost his first love and was getting ready to embark on a journey to rediscover himself while possibly falling in love again. And the most tragic thing for me was that I needed to see that drama. I needed to see the show the final episode promised me. I yearned to see Hao Ting go out into the world to heal his heart and rediscover himself and love.

Make Our Days Count disappointed me because it felt like two different dramas, with neither drama being fully realized. The potential of what it could have given viewers as either a romantic comedy with a happy ending or a new emotional drama about a heartbroken man on a coming-of-age journey left me frustrated.

I wanted to either laugh more or cry more. Make Our Days Count didn’t disappoint me because it was terrible. It disappointed me because it could have been a masterpiece, and it had the actors who could have pulled that off.

MychelleLove’s Choices

There are both good and bad dramas in the BL world; not all are amazing, but some are truly awful. I have my own taste and always look at a drama with an open mind. So far, I have always liked all the dramas that I have watched, but there are somewhere I feel more confused about the outcome. Some of these dramas are sequels to successful prequels that haven’t been scripted as well as the first one. Here are some of my most disappointing BL dramas.

The Shipper

This was of the only BL dramas I stopped watching after the fourth episode. It was just too peculiar and I was confused. I get the soul swapping, but there have been so many other dramas with the same concept, and they had been done better, in my opinion.

Dark Blue and Midnight

This series started out amazing, but got confusing and weird towards the end. The main couple and the second lead couple get together but alas, cheating happens, and then the main couple have a bitter breakup. I believe their situation could be portrayed better without all the cringe and angst. I loved how this drama started and progressed, but then it took a bizarre turn.

Addicted Heroin

I understand that this series was cancelled after the fifteenth episode. Because of the strict censorship, the rest of the episodes were never released on public platforms. I really adored the series, but then it was suddenly stopped, and I was highly disappointed as it could have been a charming love story with a better ending. I always hoped it would finish airing, or someone else would revisit the storyline and let us see the conclusion.

Gameboys

For me, it was the fact they added more episodes towards the end, that made me lost interest. I really did like the series; I even anticipated it weekly, and when at the very end (which was terrific), they added three more episodes and flipped the coin, I was genuinely disappointed. There were abundant rumors as to why the series was extended, and honestly, it did not matter to me. After the tenth episode, I never watched any of the remaining episodes, and I had my ending the way I wanted.

BenxJim S2

I was never so disappointed with a drama before. I started hoping everything would go well, and I was heartbroken when it did not. I started routing for the side couples as they were more entertaining and loveable. Frankly, the first season of Ben and Jim was cute, sweet and romantic. Season 2 was just a huge letdown.

Hello Strangers The Movie

Strangers to friends to lovers to friends to strangers- yup, I was highly disappointed as I love the main couple, but to see the angst and experience the crankiness again was more than I could handle. I did watch the whole movie, but felt let down. I hoped it would have been different and not so predictable.

I am also excited whenever a new drama comes out and gives it a chance. But some dramas did leave me disappointed. This is my opinion, and some may not agree, but that is ok.

We will be back next week with the second edition of this feature. So till then, keep watching this space as we bring you more updates from the Asian BL World!